Finger to piano key indicator



Dec. 22, 1953 L, WALLACE 2,663,211

FINGER T0 PIANO KEY INDICATOR Filed Aug. 51, 1951 I :riffs MI FIGURE 3. 2| 2s AL-wv s-EH E FINGER NUMBER NEAREs'I' ARRow 10 MAJOR I' IN VEN TOR.

LETA WALLACE BY FIGURE e.

Patented Dec. 22, 1953 FINGER T PIANO KEY INDICATOR Leta Wallace, Kansas City, Mo., assigner oi' onethird to Amy Winning, Kansas City, Mo.

Application August 31, 1951, Serial No. 244,509

2 Claims.

This invention relates to an improvement in a finger to piano key indicator guide with reference indicia to be used for all general scales.

Heretofore, several slide rule indicators have been on record for teaching chords and the fingering thereof and at least one illustrates a single slide for fingering for the left hand and right hand with the lingering unevenly spaced on the slide.

The present improved invention is the provision of a guide that is inserted between the black keys of the piano and the piano case having a series of guide arrow heads spaced thereon for a general scale, a key-note indicator to indicate the selected key to be played and for the positioning of the guide for each arrow head pointing to the respective key of the key-note scale.

Another object of the improved guide is the addition of a slide or slides being on the guide and having uniform fingering indicia to register with the nearest arrow heads pointing to the keys of a piano whether they be black or white and the arrows being properly spaced for a scale of the selected key-note whether the keys be black or white, a window on the guide, and a plurality of groups of key indicia spaced on the slide, each registering with the window of the guide for the selected key-note arrow when placed or pointed toward the piano key.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a guide with a row of arrow heads spaced thereon for a general scale. one row of arrows for a major scale, and another row for a harmonic minor scale, in either case the arrow heads pointing to the respective piano keys of a scale. a key-note indicator to indicate the scale key to be played and position the guide for each arrow head pointing to the respective key of the key-note scale. The major general scale arrow heads are spaced as follows according to the keys of the piano, beginning from the left one key space, one key space, one half space, one space, one space, one space, one half space, one space, one space, one half space. one space, one space, one space and one half space, making preferably a two octave scale. In the harmonic minor general scale the arrows spaced beginning at the left, one space, one half space, one space, one space, one half space, one and one half spaces, one half space, one space, one half space, one space, one space, one half space, one and one half spaces, and one half space making preferably a two octave scale for the harmonic minor general scale. Placing this guide with either general scale thereon it will be found that the preferable key-note middle arrow points to the selected key whether it be white or black and all of the other arrows point to their respective keys for the selected scale.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a guide member with indicia for the keys of a piano, a slide member having means to hold the slide to the guide member, a plurality of scale finger indicia all being equally spaced on the slide member. a plurality cf key scale indicia being spaced on the slide member, means to register the scale indicia and finger indicia with the indicia for the keys of a piano for a selected scale, and a register point in said guide for the first key of the selected scale.

With these objects in view the invention may be more fully understood from the accompanying drawing, the following specification and scope of the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a flat view of the unfolded guide member with the major general scale arrow spacing thereon.

Figure 2 is a view of the reverse side of Figure 1 indicating the general harmonic minor scale arrow head spacing.

Figure 3 is a, view of a right hand fingering slide member.

Figure 4 is a view of a left hand fingering slide member.

Figure 5 illustrates the assembled guide and slide members for the major scale.

Figure 6 is a slightly enlarged fragmentary view illustrating one end of the guide and slides inserted on top of the white keys of a piano and between the black keys and the piano case.

The unfolded guide member as illustrated in Figure 1 is made from a rectangular flat member I having narrow portions 8 and 9 and longitudinal fold lines I0 and II, the narrow portion 8 is provided with a pair of windows I2 and preferably a continuous arrow I3 having a multiple or plurality of heads or arrow points I4. The number of the arrow heads III are preferably i1- lustrated for two full scales and point directly to the keys of a piano when the folds Ill of guide members 1 with narrow portion 8 are inserted between the black keys I5 and the piano case I6. the guide 1 or folds I0 resting upon the white keys I'I. Only one white and one black key is illustrated but it is well known that the piano has a plurality of black and White keys.

Preferably the middle arrow I4 is designated directly on the piano as the keynote and has further identification by two dots I8 below the arrow point for alignment with a piano key. The narrow portion 8 has the word major near each window I2 therein and is used for any key in the major scale.

The standard key board and scales of a piano are well known and are well illustrated in many references of prior patents and it is not deemed necessarygto repeat the scalesgor keys in this patent application From a careful study of the arrow heads I4 the major scale spacing beginning from the left= from the first arrow head to thesecorid AarrowV curvedito include the register with the` farthestv end curved of the windows I2 and 2li and are providedl for the reception and exposure of the slidemembers 2l and ,22, the left hand end of the slide 2i is insertedV Vin the left hand slot I9. and the righthand ,end 23 .of the slide member 2I is inserted in the lower portion of slot 24. The righthand end of` theslde member 22 is inserted in the .right hand Yslot IB .and the lefthand end 25` ofslide member 22 is inserted in the upper portion of the vertical slot 2B.

It. is obvious fromfigpres 1 and 6 that the narrow portion 8 foldsback against guide inember 1 and the narrow .portion s folds forward against the guide member 1. The narrow portion 8 is usedwith theslides 2I and 22 on the far side of Figure 1 for the major general scale and the narrow portion 9 is used with the slides 2i and 22 Yonthenear side of Figure l for the minor Scalesthe slidesY being manually interchangeable for the two sides o the guide member 1.

Therleft hand slide 2l has a plurality of spaced group indicia thereon for registering with the left hand window I2 on the major scale or window 2l! on the harmonic minor scale. The right hand slide 22 has a plurality of spaced group key indicia thereon for registering with the right hand window I2 Yor 20. The key indicia group spacing, on the slides is spaced the same as the finger spacing indicated by the numerals thereon except preferably off set or staggered to register with the windows l2-and 20'.

Figure illustrates the assembled guide andslides withrthe narrow portion' exposed for theV Thereforeto. design.

major general scale. Each slide has been manually moved by tabs 21 and 28 until E' hat is exposed in each window I2. Now it is obvious that the linger indicia or reference numerals are evenly spaced throughout the spacing of arrow heads and the numeral nearest the arrow head is the correct one to use. Any other key may be selected in the same manner. The major scale indicia for thescale is made .inE capital letters and the minor scale indicials made. in tsmall or lower case letters.

Assume lthat the key of C scale is to be played. Place the key-note arrow directly over the exposed white portion of the key C near the piano caseand all arrows will point to the white keys. The pairlof arrows on each half space will point to the two white keys between the black keys for instance B-andC or E and F. Now select the illustratedrl flat scale. Place the key-note on black key E fiat, the next arrow points to white key F, next arrow to whiterkey G, next arrow to black key A flat, next arrow to black key B nat,

next arrow to white key C, the next arrow points to white key D', and the next or octave key points to black key E fiat. Any of the other scale keys will work in a similar way for the correct keys.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An indicator for correct fingering of a piano Y comprising an S-shaped holder, a slide of' flat material having a right hand portion narrower than a left hand portion and having indications thereon for the left hand ngering fitted into one portion of said S-shaped holder, a secondY slide of flat material having a right hand portion wider than the left hand vportion and having indications thereon for the right hand fingering, said second slide being fitted into another portion of said S-shaped holder parallel to said first slide.

2. An indicator such as claimed in claim 1 in which the wider section of said first'slide extends upward and in which the wider portion of said second slide extends downward, whereby, as the slide is operated, the narrow portions of the slides will assume complementary positions, one above the other.

LETI'A WALLACE.V

References Cited in the file of this patent Ul\I,IfIli.DV STATES PATENTS Q ma 

